Artwork Guide

IMPORTANT
If you have your own artwork that you wish to supply for your folder design, please check that it conforms to the Press Ready specifications set our below, or first download one of our folder templates as a guide.

By accepting our pricing when ordering with the Artwork Supplied option, you are agreeing to supply PDF with Press Ready artwork, correctly formatted. If your artwork is not supplied Press Ready, we may need to make a small extra charge to correct your digital files. However, if this is the case you will always be informed in advance and given the option to fix any errors yourself in the first instance.
When you are satisfied that your artwork meets Press Ready specifications, please click on the Artwork Upload button on the right to send artwork directly to Folder Printing Direct.

We use the latest Adobe PDF Rip in our pre-press department and our workflow is based on receiving your files saved in PDF (.pdf) format. IMPORTANT: Please save your file as 'PRESS' quality in the PDF export options.

Alternatively we can accept bitmap (image) files saved in JPEG (.jpg) format. However this can lead to text outputting slightly jagged if not high enough resolution. To help avoid this, the design file should be created at the same finished size as the printed item and saved at a minimum resolution of 300dpi, output as a 'Maximum' quality JPEG.

We are able to accept other formats, however there will be a minimum £20 additional charge for files that are not supplied in either PDF or JPG format.

Ensuring your design file has correctly set 'bleed'- if colour or images go off the edge of your document, is one of the most important aspects when considering designing anything for commercial printed output. Bleed is required OUTSIDE the edges of your document to allow for cutting tolerances of guillotines when finishing your job after printing.

If your design finishes exactly on the edge of the document, then any slight variation in the paper stack when cutting down will show as an unsightly white edge on the finished folder. By extending the graphic or background colour beyond the finished edge of the document, it ensures that any minor variation is not noticeable.
To achieve this we require that any design elements intended to go right to the finished edge of the document are extended 3mm beyond the edge of the artwork.

A 'Quiet Border' is the distance you should allow INSIDE the finished edges of your document for text or images that do not bleed. Again this allows for guillotine cutting tolerances in the opposite direction. For example, if you have text too close to the edge of a document, it could result in cutting off some of your text. Additionally, if text or non-bleeding images are too close to the finished edge and there is any slight variation when cutting, it can lead to your design looking uneven.

To ensure against this we recommend a 5mm Quiet Border is applied throughout your document, where there is no text or important graphic etc.

Please ensure that all images placed in your design document are a minimum of 300dpi (dots per inch) at the size you will be using the image.

While there is no advantage to saving your images dramatically higher than this as it will make no difference to print quality and increase file sizes unnecessarily; images with resolutions below 300dpi can impair the quality of the printed output. Leading to 'pixellation' of the image and jagged edges.

Please be aware that commercial print is output in the CMYK colour space as opposed to the RGB colour space used for monitors. This can cause large colour shifts to achieve the closest match (most commonly the vibrancy of the default Blue in RGB is not reproducible in CMYK). There are a large number of variables that can affect printed output, so simply looking at the appearance of colours on your monitor is unlikely to reflect printed output accurately. In much the same way, output from an un-calibrated desktop printer may well produce very different colour hues to the final printed folder when produced on a commercial printing press.

ABOUT US

Folder Printing Direct is proud to be one of the market leading printers in the UK, achieving a reputation for excellence since 1897.